Sleep of' Northern Birds. 103 



quite peculiar. But few species have sufficient confidence in 

 their physical powers, to attempt self-defence, when they are 

 conscious of the superiority of their foe. " This, however, is done 

 by some of the Accipitres, as well as different Grallae and Palmi- 

 pedes, as the lapwing, gull, sea-swallow, when they have young. 

 Therefore birds of prey are not so dangerous to man as quadru- 

 peds, as the wolf, the bear, &c. When they cannot escape, how- 

 ever, even pusillanimous birds defend themselves, the same as 

 the most cowardly man fights when all retreat is cut off. Thus, 

 the little singing birds bite the finger of the person who catches 

 them, and gulls or ducks which have been shot in the wing, en- 

 deavour to free themselves by pecking at the fingers of the hun- 

 ter. Only the wading birds, provided with a long and soft bill, 

 as the snipe, attempt no resistance when taken. The innate 

 hatred which other birds bear to the Accipitres, is seen by some 

 of the best fliers, when they could easily escape by flight, over- 

 come by their fears, pursuing them with cries and provocations. 

 Thus the swallow, raven, crow, lapwing, sea-swallow, whenever 

 they see a rapacious bird, immediately fly after him and pursue 

 him with loud cries in the air. 



I have already, on different occasions, noticed the Repose and 

 Sleep of the northern birds. Most sleep in the dark, only a few, 

 as some owls and the Puffinus, are true nocturnal birds. Some 

 species, however, which, at other times, are true diurnal birds, 

 migrate in the night-time. The ducks, in particular, are con- 

 stantly in movement on the clear moonlight nights. The bittern, 

 Limosa melanura, Gallinula crex^ and nightingale, prefer emit- 

 ting their noise in the twilight ; and gulls and lapwings often 

 cry in the night-time. With these exceptions, darkness is the 

 signal for a universal stillness in the ornithological world. In 

 the northern regions, therefore, the duration of their sleep varies 

 very much with the seasons, as in summer they scarcely sleep 

 one or two hours, and in winter more than sixteen or eighteen 

 hours. The long winter's sleep, and the consequent inferior de- 

 gree of locomotion, and diminished appetite, are all in accord- 

 ance with the scanty products for their subsistence in the polar 

 regions at that season. Birds give a preference to certain 

 breeding places. Some species hardly sleep at all, as the Sula 



